By admin 
Josh Allen is the kind of player who gets people fired.
If you’re an opposing defensive coordinator, Allen’s rare skill set can make your entire unit look hapless, like he did to the Detroit Lions in Thursday night’s 41-31 victory. Allen accounted for five touchdowns, passing for 248 yards and a trio of scores while adding 69 yards and finding the end zone two more times on the ground.
Allen’s performance Thursday night moved him into the top 20 on the NFL’s all-time rushing touchdowns list.
Not rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. Rushing touchdowns in a career, period. By the end of the 2026 season, Allen could be passing names like Franco Harris and Eric Dickerson on that list.
With his combination of size and athleticism, Allen’s value as a runner has never been in question, even going back to his college days at Wyoming. But what’s made Allen a superstar and MVP in the NFL has been his development as a passer.
Josh Allen has rushed OR passed for all 8 of the Bills touchdowns to start the season 😤 pic.twitter.com/RQC0dVBNaW
— PFF (@PFF) September 18, 2026
Much of Allen’s college tape is a masterclass in what not to do as a passer. He barely completed 56 percent of his passes, throwing 15 interceptions in 2016 and just 16 touchdown passes the following year. His accuracy and decision-making were all over the place, and his elite arm strength had yet to be harnessed by anticipation and touch.
Heading into the 2018 NFL Draft, the conversation surrounding Allen was the usual fare, with analysts balancing the upside of his physical traits with a long history of watching talented and physically gifted passers who struggled with the finer points of playing the position failing to improve in those areas once they were up against NFL-level defenses. That didn’t stop the Buffalo Bills from trading up five spots to land Allen with the No. 7 overall pick, taking a massive swing for the fences that Allen could be the exception to the rule.
Things didn’t look great right away, as Allen threw just 10 touchdown passes to 12 interceptions over 11 starts during his rookie season, completing just shy of 53 percent of his passes. He made a big impact on the ground, rushing for 631 yards and eight touchdowns, but his struggles as a passer were still painfully evident.
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Quarterbacks rarely get better at things like anticipation, ball placement, accuracy and decision-making when they make the jump to the NFL, but after showing marked improvement during his sophomore campaign, Allen made a huge jump in Year 3 and hasn’t looked back. The elite playmaker he’s become is far beyond anything he put on tape at Wyoming.
Tighter and more consistent footwork along with better mental processing on pass concepts is where you can see gains in QB accuracy and anticipation.
Here’s a decent example comparing Josh Allen at Wyoming and from Sunday. Look how much shorter Allen’s stride is currently. pic.twitter.com/Wsw53574gU
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) January 25, 2022
And that’s why general managers across the league will continue spending first-round picks on big, athletic quarterback prospects with otherworldly arm strength, hoping that they’ll find the next Allen and reap the rewards.
But players like Allen are exceptions for a reason. The only other quarterback in the league who can threaten opposing defenses with a truly elite dual-threat skill set is Lamar Jackson. Both are rare overall athletes who beat defenses in different ways; Allen’s trump card is his massive frame, while Jackson’s is elite speed. Both can pick apart defenses with high-level arm talent, whether from the pocket or on the run.
It’s hard to blame those GMs for taking a swing on any player they believe could be the next Allen or Jackson, but the hit rate is rough. And when you take that swing on a quarterback at the top of the draft, it either works out, or you end up working somewhere else.
At 30 years old, Allen appears to be at the top of his game, and it looks like he’ll be carving up just about every defense that lines up across from him for years to come. He’ll keep defensive coaches up at night, and keep front offices desperately trying to find their own version.
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This story was originally published September 17, 2026 at 10:34 PM.